A new detective took over the cold case and sent the preserved evidence to the forensic lab in March this year. The results came in just before Christmas
For more than two decades, the brutal murder of 84-year-old Wilma Mobley has remained a cold case.
Wilma was found dead on August 10, 1995 in Jerome, Idaho, USA after being strangled and beaten with an “axe-type instrument”, authorities said.
Police have identified several suspects, but do not have enough evidence to conclude that one of them is responsible. That changed this year, Jerome's police chief announced in a press release before Christmas, when new findings and DNA collected from Wilma's underwear led authorities to her neighbors.
The suspect, Danny Lee Kennison, killed himself in 2001 at his home in Idaho, Police Chief Duane Rubinck said.
Kennison was one of three suspects throughout the investigation, but without solid evidence, the case was closed, the police chief said.
Authorities are coming back to him asking for help from the FBI and the Idaho State Police Laboratory to help catch the killer, Rubinck said.
In the summer of 2022, a new detective reviewed the case and evidence collected during the homicide and sent it to the state police forensics lab for testing in March 2023.
The case broke Christmas week after state police lab technicians found a zipper from Wilma's underwear sent for testing contained a “significant amount of DNA profile” matching Kennison.
“Advances in DNA science have the potential to reveal the truth after years of uncertainty,” Idaho State Police said in a statement. Facebook registration. “Science, combined with the relentless dedication of the investigation, can unravel mysteries and bring closure to victims and their families.”
Kennison and Wilma were neighbors at the time of the murders, but they had no personal relationship, authorities said.
“The amount of DNA matching Kennison, excluding the other suspects mentioned in the case, and no other DNA profile, the Jerome Police Department will close this case,” Rubinck said.
The detective who took up the case met the family members and broke the news to them.
“The Jerome Police Department is grateful to the officers, detectives and prosecutors who worked on this case over the years and helped secure the evidence for this investigation,” Rubinck added.
Jerome is located 75 miles southeast of Boise.
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